How to Structure Work in Podio

Podio is cloud-based, social collaboration product with all the basics features you would expect for status posts and group discussions, but it also provides a couple of important facilities for organizing work:

An App Builder for structuring information and processes

Tasks as distinct social objects, which you can add from anywhere and associate with anything

In Podio-speak, an app is a simple application, one you can build yourself or adopt and modify from its App Market. (The Podio App Market is stocked with apps users have created and shared, all for free.)

To get an existing app, from within any Podio workspace, click Add App and click either Go to the App Market or Go to the App Builder, as shown in the following figure.

The Podio App Market is well stocked with apps for common business purposes. The advantage of creating an app or finding and modifying one for your own purposes is you can track exactly the information you need to track — and no more.

How to build a Podio app

Creating a Podio app doesn’t require learning a programming language or database design. The App Builder is really a drag-and-drop form designer, which automatically creates an underlying structure for storing the data people will record when they use the app.

Here is how you use the App Builder to define basic web apps with associated databases. Apps let you store, organize, and receive all sorts of data, with tasks as one of the basic data types.

In a workspace, click the Add App icon.

Click the Go to the App Builder button.

In the App Builder, give your app a name — for example, Design Approval — type the name of the single item that would be created in the app — for example, Design — and then choose a relevant icon.

Drag and drop the building blocks on the left side of the screen into the app based on what business function you would like your app to perform, as shown in the following figure.

For example, if the work to be managed with this app is time-sensitive, you want a Date field to be able to set deadlines with. If you will use this app to delegate work, use a Contact field and rename it something like Responsible Person.

When you have all the building blocks you need, click Save.

You now have a functioning app and can begin to add new business records using this structure.

To change the app at any point in the future, click the wrench icon in the upper right of any screen within the app and then click the Modify App button.

How to create a task in Podio

You can create Podio tasks that are associated with an app or a workspace, but you can also create stand-alone tasks. This is as simple as posting your status.

Click New Task or press T on your keyboard to start creating a new task.

The task editor is shown in the following figure.

Enter the name and a description of the task.

Assign the task.

You can assign tasks to your contacts on the private social network. Alternatively, you can assign a task to someone outside the organization (such as a contractor) by entering an e-mail address. That person will get an invitation to join as Guest User with access to one specific workspace.

Set the due date and time for the task.

For best results, associate the task with a workspace.

This helps teams understand who is working on what, reduces the chances of duplication of work, and enables feedback for a better end product.

If you created your task from within a workspace, the name of that workspace will be filled in by default. Otherwise, the field will display a prompt: Attach this task to any item or workspace. Click on that field, and begin typing the name of the workspace. Podio will present the matching workspaces you can click to select.

(Optional) Change the task’s privacy status from Private to Shared to make it visible to all members of the workspace.

Click the Create Task button.

If you assign the task to someone other than yourself, that colleague receives a notification about the new task. The task also appears in that colleague’s Task list. You will be notified whenever the task is interacted with: for example, when it’s marked as complete.

How to create related tasks in Podio

Tasks in Podio are most commonly used in relation to app items. For example, you may relate a task to a lead in your Podio CRM app asking a member of your sales team to get in touch with that prospect.

Related tasks are shown in context to the work they are dedicated to and save time for users because they can clearly see, instantly, what this task is for.

When looking at an app item (a record managed by a specific app), click the New Task button in the right sidebar.

Fill in the task details.

Fill in the name, description, and deadline, just as you would for a stand-alone task.

Assign the task to whom you would like to do the work.

Those people will be notified. They will see that the task is referenced to an item and be able to click the reference to go to the full item.

The task will appear in the right-hand sidebar when you look at the app item.

If the task is marked as private, it will be visible only to the person who created the task as well as the person(s) to whom the task is assigned.

Tasks that have been completed will show in the same right-hand sidebar of the app item, with a strikethrough effect on the text. Select the check box next to any task to mark it complete.